


With Galaxies Inside

by k_lynn



Category: Free!
Genre: Future Fic, Get Together, M/M, Soulmate AU, all of them are between 22 and 24 years old
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-04
Updated: 2014-11-04
Packaged: 2018-02-24 01:39:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2563544
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/k_lynn/pseuds/k_lynn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When they're born, everyone has a mark on their inner wrist. It's unique to them, and as they grow and mature it changes with them, until they fall in love and it reaches their heart. Everyone has a soulmate, they could be your best friend, your neighbor, or a stranger on the street, but you won't know them until you fall in love with them. </p>
<p>Makoto and Rin's marks moved and changed as they grew, as they lived, as they moved apart and came back together, slowly inching toward their hearts.</p>
            </blockquote>





	With Galaxies Inside

**Author's Note:**

  * For [nyghtrain](https://archiveofourown.org/users/nyghtrain/gifts).



> Nyghtrain asked for a Makorin soulmate au or just them falling in love. 
> 
> I'm a sucker for a soulmate au and for Makorin. I hope you enjoy this.

When they were born, every person had a mark on the inside of their left wrist. It varied in color, shape and diameter, with no real reason to it. 

When he was infant, Makoto’s was a bright spot of green covering the whole of the soft skin of his inner wrist, threaded through with spots of silver. When the doctor remarked on its size, his mother joked it was because he would have big heart. 

When Rin was born, his was a pale oval of grey shot through with swirls of faint pink and blue and silver. It was an average size, not too big or too small, sitting right at the center of his wrist. 

As they grew, it changed with them. All children’s marks tended to stay on the wrist, though the color would change. Makoto’s paled to a milky, pearlescent white, and the silver took on the green, it shimmered in thin ribbons around his wrist. Rin’s darkened in stark spirals, black, but sparkling inside with those same pinks and blues like tiny galaxies trapped in it. 

Every time the mark changed, it itched and warmed on the skin, and as children, they watched it in wonder at something that was a part of them but at the same time not. They all knew that one day it would span all the way up their arm, creep along their shoulder to their chest. When it settled over their heart, that’s when they’d know. Everyone had a soul mate. They could be your best friend, or a stranger on the street, but you wouldn’t truly know them until you fell in love.

Makoto’s settled on the lower part of his forearm and stayed there for most of his childhood. No one was worried, most children’s didn’t ever move that much, and he was such a sweet loving child, no one thought he would be one of the few whose marks stopped at their shoulder and stayed there. Rin’s moved steadily to his forearm and hung there, until middle school when it shot to his elbow. But Rin was an impulsive child, like him, his mark either shot forward or stood still. Makoto’s slid along at a steadier pace, but when it reached his elbow, it stopped and didn’t move for years. 

In high school, Makoto’s moved again. The ribbons lengthened and got wider, wrapping around his bicep and hovering there. To him, it didn’t feel like they’d stopped, but like they were waiting for something. Being seventeen and on the cusp of maturity, he knew he should have an idea of who it was the mark moved for. He dared not think about it, though somewhere deep down, he knew the answer hovered in a sharp smile and vibrant hair and spirals of black with galaxies hovering in it. He said nothing, too scared to lose something he’d already lost once before he even knew what the loss meant. 

Right before his last year, Rin’s moved too, snapping to his bicep and lingering there in elegant spirals tapered at the tips. He sometimes stared at it, wondering, like it knew his mind more than he did, until Souske kicked his bunk and told him it was time for practice. Rin pondered it, not too deeply, not enough to admit it was smiling green eyes and shimmering white against tan skin. The things he was aiming for couldn’t wait while he figured it out. 

When Rin got to Australia for the second, well third, time, his mark stopped where it was and stubbornly held there, like it was trying to spite him. He watched his teammates, his friends, find their soulmates, watched their marks creep toward their hearts like everyone hoped theirs would. Rin watched his own, hoping it would move, and at the same time hoping it would stay exactly where it was. He didn’t want the mark to move here, not in Sydney not with the any number of men and women he met, because in his dreams he still saw green and pearlescent white. When his teammates joked that he was waiting for someone back in Japan, he laughed with them, not ever letting on how right they were. 

In Tokyo, Makoto was too busy to think about it at first. In moments of homesickness, and later nostalgia, he missed his family, he missed his friends. He had Haru with him, and he appreciated his closeness, but he felt like something was missing. His mark hadn’t moved since high school and though he looked at it sometimes, he was secretly relieved when it didn’t move. He knew everyone assumed that eventually his mark would move for Haru, but he didn’t feel that way. And his best friend’s mark, deep blue and wave like, made it to his shoulder and stopped. He seemed perfectly content with that. 

Neither Makoto nor Rin thought too long or hard about it. Neither admitted that when they talked, they could feel their marks itch, bit by tiny inching bit, so neither knew the other was suffering the same. 

***

Rin didn’t tell anyone when his plane got in, because he didn’t want Makoto dropping everything to come get him. Tokyo wasn’t nearly as intimidating as Sydney, anyway, and he navigated it pretty easily. He had Makoto’s address and a vague idea how to find it, but it was still dark when he mounted the steps. Makoto’s name was on the placard in neat scrawl, and Rin pressed on the button beneath it a little longer and a little harder than he needed to. It was worth it to hear Makoto scramble for the door, his glasses a little askew and hair mussed when he pulled the door open. All Rin could think in that moment was ‘cute’. 

Years of visits and Skype conversations and Face Time when Makoto finally got rid of that flip phone had robbed Rin of any shock at the changes in Makoto. A last bit of growth and he was almost 187 centimeters, but at least he hadn’t left Rin completely behind. He never managed to catch up to him in height, but his 183cm height wasn’t too shabby. At least Makoto wasn’t as tall as Sousuke. His best friend was a freaking monster and he liked to loom over him just to rub in the fact that Rin had to look up to meet his gaze. Makoto was kinder about it, and dipped his head a little to smile at Rin. 

“Rin! Come in. How come you didn’t tell me your plane was getting in, I would have come to get you?” Makoto ushered him in as he spoke, stepping back up out of the entrance way to give Rin room to set down his bag and toe off his shoes. 

“And that’s exactly why I didn’t tell you,” Rin replied. Makoto may have gotten older, his jaw a little more defined, but his smile was exactly the same. “You have a life, Makoto, I know that. I can take the train to your apartment on my own.” 

Makoto made a little amused sound. “I know that, Rin. But I wanted to welcome you.” 

Rin shook his head, sighing a little. “You’re welcoming me just fine.” He lifted his gaze and smiled back. “Thanks for this by the way. With everything going on, I didn’t even think about finding a place to live here.”

“It’s totally fine. I get it. You can stay here as long as you need to,” Makoto replied, picking up his bag before Rin can stutter out a protest. “I have the room.” 

Rin followed Makoto deeper into the apartment, half listening as the man talked about setting him up with a futon in the spare room, but he’d get him something else if it wasn’t comfortable, his attention more on Makoto’s place. It was like him, warm and homey, comfortably worn furniture and a fish tank along the wall opposite the couch. 

“You sure that’s a good idea with Haru coming over so much?” Rin asked, pointing to the tank, smirking at the look Makoto gave him. 

“That’s funny,” the brunt replied, even though his flatly pleasant tone said otherwise. Makoto was good at that sweetly cutting sarcasm that he’d developed over the years. He’d spent too much time between Rin and Haru. 

“I’m hilarious,” Rin said without missing a beat, grinning widely at Makoto. 

A rich, soft laugh rolled from Makoto’s throat. “I’m glad you’re back, Rin.” 

Rin’s grin softened a little, and he nodded. “I’m glad to be back. I missed seeing you all the time.” He cleared his throat. “You all, everyone. You know what I meant.”

Makoto gave him an odd look, but it smoothed quickly. “Of course I do. We missed you. I missed you.” 

Warmth blossomed in Rin’s chest when Makoto said that, and he thought maybe, for a split second, he felt a tingle in his left arm. He pushed past it, itching with the desire to check, even though he would never do that in front of Makoto. There were papers strewn on the table that looked a lot like training regimens on the table, and to distract himself, Rin walked over to study them. 

“For Haru?” he asked, with a quick glance up at Makoto. If that was the case, he was going way too easy on him.

Makoto laughed, “No, not Haru. One of the coaches at my Club is out on medical leave, so the manager asked me to take over one of the advanced groups. High schoolers.” 

Rin nodded, “They must be pretty good.” 

“They are. Lots of enthusiasm, you’d like them.” 

“How many classes do you have now?” Rin asked, settling down on the couch to keep poking at the papers. 

“Four,” Makoto replied, sitting down next to him. “Two beginner classes, one intermediate, and now the advanced one. You should come visit.” 

Rin glanced up at him again. “Sure. Want me to come talk to your classes?”

Makoto blinked, surprised, and his face lit up at the offer. “That’d be wonderful, Rin. I’m sure my advanced class would love to hear from a professional swimmer.” 

Any protest Rin may have made, since he’d been mostly joking, was lost in the way Makoto’s face brightened to blinding at the idea. “And an Olympic hopeful, don’t forget that.”

“Not just hopeful,” Makoto said, shaking his head, “A _future_ member of the Japanese National Team.” 

Rin smiled up at him, happy and embarrassed, and maybe a little wan. “You sound so sure about that.”

“I am sure,” Makoto said firmly, standing up. “Do you want some dinner?”

“You’re going to cook?” Rin tried not to sound worried, and didn’t quite manage it.

Makoto only laughed. “I can, you know. A little. Nothing fancy, but I manage. I can’t exactly have Haru over here every night to make me dinner.” 

Rin had long ago gotten over his shock that Haru and Makoto didn’t in fact live together, but it didn’t mean he couldn’t tease. “But he’s your platonic life partner. Isn’t that his job?” He got a long flat look for his teasing, and he simply smiled back. 

“So, dinner?” Makoto asked, smoothly getting them away from the topic of him and Haru. 

***

Makoto wasn’t used to living with someone anymore. He woke sometime in the early hours to someone moving about in the main room, and for a second his heart leapt into his throat. Then he remembered that Rin was staying with him and shook his head at himself. He ventured out in his boxers and t-shirt, rubbing a hand through his hair and was met with Rin rifling about in his tiny fridge until he came up with a bottle of water. He was dressed in his running clothes, his hair pulled back from his face and he looked exhausted.

“Rin, what are you doing?” Makoto asked, his voice rough still with sleep.

Rin glanced up at him, “Going for a run.”

“Rin, it’s three in the morning,” he tried, not quite sure what to make of the man’s sudden need to be moving. “Is it jet lag?”

“Makoto, there’s only a two hour time difference between here and Sydney.” Rin stopped though, and looked at him, and Makoto found he had to shift his gaze with the intensity of his stare. “I’m sorry I woke you. Go back to sleep, I’ll be fine.” 

Makoto looked back to his face. “Rin, come sit down.” He wasn’t about to let him go running when he’d just gotten here and hadn’t even gotten a full night’s sleep.

Rin looked like he wanted to protest that, but when Makoto moved purposefully over to the couch and sat down, he could feel the man following him. He was worried about him now, and the nervous energy he was giving off was not helping make him feel any better.

“What’s wrong?” Makoto asked gently, smiling at Rin when he glanced quickly at him and then just as quickly away. 

For a long time, Rin didn’t say anything. His eyes were distant, fixed on some point on Makoto’s coffee table, but it was obvious he wasn’t seeing it. In the silence, Makoto found his gaze draw to the mark on Rin’s arm. He’s always thought it was beautiful, the graceful spirals, the sparkling colors in the black, it looked like he could reach inside them, touch those swirls that looked like distant stars. It disappeared up his sleeve, how far Makoto didn’t know, and he knew he shouldn’t ask. But he wondered who made the mark move so much. And if the thought was accompanied by a pang of jealousy, he didn’t think to hard about it. 

Rin cleared his throat, and Makoto quickly pulled his gaze away from his arm and back up to meet his troubled gaze. “What if I don’t make it?” he asked softly, so quiet Makoto almost didn’t hear him. 

Makoto’s stomach twisted up, “Oh, Rin,” he said, reaching for his hand. “Of course you will. And they’ll be lucky to have you. You’re so good, you’ve trained so hard, there’s no way you wouldn’t make it.” 

Rin blew out a harsh sigh, “Yeah, my times are great, my wins are good, but these next couple competitions are going to decide if I make it or not. I have to be one of the top six swimmers.”

“You will be,” Makoto squeezed Rin’s hand. “You are. I’ve never seen anyone work so hard and so long for something the way you have. You’ll make it happen,” he dipped his head so Rin was forced to look at him. “Because that’s what you do.” 

Rin’s tumultuous expression eased a little, and he offered Makoto a tiny smile that melted the brunet’s insides. “Thanks, Makoto.”

“You’re welcome,” Makoto replied, wishing he wasn’t so prone to blushing, because he could feel his face heating up. “Now please get some more sleep. I’ll go for a run with you in the morning. The actual morning, maybe when the sun’s actually out?”

“Sure,” Rin said, and his hand moved slowly away from Makoto’s. “Sleep sounds good.” 

He headed back toward the spare room while Makoto turned off the lights again. With his alarm now set, Makoto collapsed back into bed, trying not to think too much about how Rin’s hand felt in his, and busied himself with worrying over Rin’s confession. He knew Rin doubted himself, and this time, he wasn’t going to let it him suffer alone. There had to be something he could do. 

***

The solution he came up with was at once simple and extremely troublesome. Haru was easy, all he had to do was mention Rin and swimming, not particularly in that order, and Haru was on board. He got in touch with Rei, relieved to find the man had gotten back from his conference, and he’d been enthusiastic in his agreement. Getting in touch with Rei, by extension got him in touch with Nagisa, when he pulled the phone from his hand, though he had to extract a firm promise of silence from the blond. He had a feeling Rei would have more to do with that than anything Makoto did. He trusted Rei with the task. 

From there his task got a little more difficult. Finding Momotarou required calling Gou and talking to Seijuurou. Gou had been enthusiastic about the idea, and he had a feeling he would be seeing her and Seijuurou too, but not nearly as enthusiastic as Momo’s response. It was heartening, and he was left feeling more optimistic about the whole thing. 

There were only two left. It took some work, but he managed to help Rin misplace his phone for an afternoon while he extracted some needed numbers from him. Nitori had been surprised to hear from him, but welcoming and pleased with the idea, and he’d promised to make the time to be there. He was the easy one. The other made Makoto strangely nervous. 

He hadn’t talked to Sousuke much. He’d been there, for some of their meetings, but he was always somewhat isolated from everyone save Rin. Makoto hadn’t ever really been able to get to know him. But he bit the bullet and called him, hoping he’d at least remember him, because it wouldn’t be complete without him. 

Sousuke answered on the third ring and his voice was impartial and bland and somehow intimidating, even though they weren’t in the same room. 

Makoto lost his voice for a beat, but he managed to keep his voice even. “Sou- Ah, Yamazaki-san?” 

“Yes,” he replied, sounding wary. 

“Um, hello, this is Makoto.”

“Who?”

“Tachibana Makoto? Rin’s friend?”

“Are you asking me or telling me?” Sousuke asked, but before Makoto could manage more than a flustered squeak, he let out a low laugh, “I’m just kidding, I remember you. From Iwatobi. What can I do for you?”

Makoto forced himself to take a calming breath and shook his head at himself. “Well, I’m sure you know that Rin is back, and well, he’s been a little down recently, about his chances at the Olympics, and I thought we might do something for him. A relay, just like old times. Just a friendly one, you know… To raise his spirits.”

Sousuke let him get it all out without interrupting, and when he spoke, all he asked was, “When?”

Makoto gave a relieved laugh, “Next Friday at 3 o clock?” He gave him the name and location of his swim club too.

Rustling on the other end told him Sousuke was writing it down. “I’ll be there.” 

“Oh, thank—” Dead air on the other end told him Sousuke had hung up, “you…” Makoto shook his head, not at all offended. The man obviously cared about Rin, and that was all that mattered. 

***

“You didn’t have to come for the whole day with me, Rin,” Makoto said, glancing sidelong as they walked toward the train.

Rin shrugged, “I didn’t have anything else to do today.” And he was not finding excuses to hang out with Makoto more. Nope. 

He was living with him, but they still had their own lives. Makoto worked a lot, with the new responsibility, and Rin was using his down time to meet with some coaches and representatives from some of the teams in the area. Even with his old coach’s connections, it was still a process. He’d spent the last few years in Australia, he had to work to make a name for himself here too. 

Makoto smiled over at him, “Well, I promise I won’t take it personally if you get bored.”

Rin looked at him flatly until Makoto’s smile turned into a sunny grin that he knew Rin hated, and the redhead glared at him for a moment or two longer until he was forced into laughter. Makoto joined him, leaned on his shoulder, laughing like idiots together all the way to the train. 

*** 

As it turned out, Rin didn’t have a lot of time to get bored. The kids loved him, especially the girls, which made Makoto laugh helplessly until Rin growled at him. Makoto could tell Rin hadn’t expected the attention, so he was a little overwhelmed by it, but he adapted pretty quickly. He was attentive and borderline indulgent with the younger kids, answering their questions and letting them drag him around. Makoto was really helpless against how cute it was. One of his younger students wandered away from the group and scared herself getting a little too close to the deeper side of the pool. Rin was there almost immediately, scooping her up and setting her in the far shallow end next to Makoto. 

“Gotta be more careful,” he admonished her gently, crouching in the water so he was at her level. “I know you want to be able to get to the other end of the pool, but it’s dangerous if you don’t know all the basics yet. Stay here with us okay?” 

The little girl nodded, tucking her chin and pouting until Rin tapped her on the nose and grinned at her. She giggled and grinned back, latching onto him, and Makoto was unashamed to admit he melted a little. Rin was really wonderful with the kids. 

“Tachibana-sensei,” the boy he held on his hip whispered to him, his small fingers touching his shoulder lightly. The touch connected with the edge of one of his marks and he jolted lightly, that area just a little more sensitive than the rest of his skin. Small children didn’t know yet that it wasn’t appropriate to touch the mark of someone who wasn’t your soulmate. He looked down to see what was so fascinating about his collarbone and blinked. When had his mark creeped up over the top of his shoulder like that?

By the time his advanced group started to trickle in, Haru had joined them. He sat on the edge of the pool and waited while Makoto and Rin talked to the teenagers. This was different, Rin was a little more serious, a little more professional with them. He answered their questions seriously and while Makoto found it hard sometimes to hold their attention, Rin didn’t seem to have that problem. They listened to him with rapt attention, especially when he talked about swimming with a team. 

Makoto had always admired that quality in Rin. He was passionate, and he moved the people around him. He already liked swimming, so he didn’t need the peptalk, but even he felt something stirring in him when Rin started talking, silly as it was. 

He fell back to sit on one of the blocks with Haru, so he didn’t immediately notice that that their remaining visitors had arrived until Nagisa came bounding past him. He sighed, opening his mouth to tell him, once again, not to run in the pool area, but the blond man had already latched onto Rin. 

“Rin-chan!” 

Rin swore under his breath in surprise, knocked a step forward by the hug. He turned a little, growling at Nagisa, who hadn’t released him yet, much to the amusement of Makoto’s class. “Nagisa, what the hell?”

“Nagisa, really,” Rei walked up to the pair, shooting Rin a long suffering expression as he helped the redhead extract himself from his partner’s iron grip. 

“Thank god, I didn’t think you were ever going to stop talking.” 

Rin turned, his annoyance smoothing as he stared. Sousuke strode up with Nitori and Momo in tow, his smirk at once gentle and arrogant and Rin was quick to glare at him. 

“Screw you, Sousuke,” he replied, but he moved immediately to greet them, his fist connecting with his friend’s as soon as they were within reaching distance of each other. “What are you guys doing here?”

“Someone,” Sousuke slanted a sly glance in Makoto’s direction, “thought you could use a little pick me up, so here we are.”

Rin blinked, his glance moving to Makoto as well, and the brunet laughed, his cheeks warming. “I thought it would be nice… to do a relay, just like when we were third years.”

Something in Rin’s expression made Makoto’s face warm even further, heating all the way through him, and he found when their eyes met, he couldn’t look away from him. Rin’s face screwed up, just a little, and he struggled for a second. Makoto rose up, worried, because his intention hadn’t been to make Rin cry.

“And this time,” Momo cut in boisterously. “We’re gonna win. We have two professional swimmers and a trainer. You only have Nanase-san!” 

Nagisa rose to that bait. “Excuse me, Mako-chan’s a swim coach, I think we’ll be just fine.” 

As they dissolved into bickering, Rin turned his attention to grabbing Momo around the neck, growling at him, and Makoto thought he looked a little relieved. 

Makoto lifted his gaze to Sousuke. Granted, they didn’t know each other very well, but he wasn’t all that surprised to find that out about the man. “A trainer?”

Sousuke nodded, “Yeah, I want to make sure this,” he motioned to his shoulder and the surgical scar there, “doesn’t happen to anyone else.” 

Makoto smiled slightly. “It suits you, being a trainer I mean.” He walked away, leaving Sousuke staring after him, gently helping Rin and Nitori rein in the bickering so he could address his class, who were watching this with equal parts horror and amusement. 

“Everyone,” he said, drawing their attention to him. “These are some friends of mine. We’re going to do a relay. Pay special attention to Matsuoka-san and Nanase-san, as well as Nitori-san. I was to hear your opinions on their forms in the dive as well as their approach to their strokes. Nanase-san will be doing free, Matsuoka-san butterfly, and Nitori-san will be doing breast. Please pay attention.”

Rin joined his former team mates by their lane, lightly nudging Sousuke with his knee. The taller man turned to smirk at him, and they spoke lowly for a second before Sousuke’s gaze lifted to Makoto and he nudged Rin’s shoulder. The redhead turned to look at him, and he found himself flushing and looking away, unable to withstand his searching gaze. 

He cleared his throat. “I hope you don’t mind me having you do butterfly, Rin,” he said. “I thought I might use this as a teaching moment for my students, and it would be easier for all of you to do different strokes.”

“It’s no problem,” Rin replied, his voice low. “It’s good. Sousuke shouldn’t do it with his shoulder anyway.” He paused faltered, his face slowly coloring, “Thanks for this, it’s really—”

“Mako-chan, come on. Let’s get started.”

Makoto glanced at Nagisa and turned back briefly to touch Rin’s arm. “I guess I should get in the water,” he said with a laugh. 

As he hopped down into the water, pulling himself up into a starting position, he could hear his students cheering for him. A surge of adrenaline went through him, settling tension in his legs. It propelled him forward when Haru called to start, arching his back as he sliced into the water. This wasn’t like when he swam to keep in shape, it wasn’t even like when he and Haru swam together, light heartedly racing even though Haru was levels above him. This was a shimmer of the way it had felt in high school, the edge of competition he didn’t openly admit to having most of the time. It was swimming with his friends and being good at it and wanting to get better. This was for Rin. To push him forward when he faltered, to hear his laughter, and his voice, cheering them on. 

His hands hit the wall a second before Momo’s and Nagisa pushed off, bare moments before Nitori could. It was easy to see all of Nitori’s training, he was ahead of Nagisa before the first turn, his form and pacing near perfect. He wasn’t on Rin and Haru’s level yet, but he was getting there. Makoto pulled himself up out of the pool, catching Rin’s fierce grin as he watched, cheering for Nitori. The silver haired man touched the wall a good two arm’s lengths ahead of Nagisa, and Rin hit the water perfectly. He was blazing fast, flying through the water with the perfect sweeps of his arms. Makoto noticed from the corner of his eye that his students had come closer to the edge of the pool, cheering loudly for Rin now. Rin didn’t hold himself back, no one expected him to, and Rei, though he tried, was out of practice and he didn’t stand a chance. 

Sousuke’s long body gave him more power in the dive than Haru, and he had a good head start, but Haru was fast, his natural talent honed into a skill that was vicious. He closed the most of the gap between him and Sousuke by the turn, but Sousuke wasn’t flagging, and Haru had to push to try and get ahead. They were all cheering now, all of them, Makoto’s students, some of the parents too. Sousuke’s hands touched the wall a millisecond before Haru’s, aided by his long reach. 

Rin helped Sousuke out of the pool with Nitori while Momo punched the air and whooped. Makoto chuckled, shaking his head, about to say something, but Sousuke gave Rin a friendly shove in the shoulder and sent him into Makoto’s chest. 

There was moment where neither of them said anything. Rin’s face was wet from the pool or his happy tears he didn’t know, but he grinned up at Makoto, and the mark, pearlescent and green, on his shoulder slid to his heart, the warmth seeping through his whole body out from his chest. His slid his thumb along Rin’s cheek, and he smiled with his whole face, “Congratulations, Rin.” 

Rin stared at him for a second. It was the breathless laugh, that smile that lit up his whole face. His mark, black with spirals like galaxies inside, shot to his heart, exploding like a firework in his chest. “I think I love you,” he said, breathless and happy, grinning like his face might split. 

Makoto laughed, awed, his green eyes filled with warmth. “I know I love you,” he answered, barely getting all the words out before Rin pulled him down into a kiss. 

A cleared throat and their friends’ laughter pulled them from one another and reminded them that yes, there were quite a few people in this room with them. Makoto leaned back and blushed, embarrassed but still too happy to care much. Rin looked more annoyed with the interruption than anything else.

“Trust you to find your soulmate over a freaking relay,” Sousuke muttered, loud enough for Rin to hear. 

“Bite me, Sousuke.” Rin grumbled, but he stepped back from Makoto. It wasn’t like a little distance would bother them, he could still feel him, even when they weren’t touching. 

Makoto and Rin were swarmed by his students, and of them clamoring about how amazing that was, and Rin soaked up the praise like he always did, allowing them to take up his attention once more. 

Nagisa demanded a rematch from ‘Ai-chan’ even as Nitori begged him not to call him that, and then reluctantly agreed. 

Sousuke watched them dispassionately, but when Nitori walked past he said, “That was a good run before, but you’re losing momentum on the kick. How are your times?”

Nitori paused, gave him mildly pouting look, “My times are fine. How am I losing momentum?” 

“You’re not completing your kick action,” Sousuke replied, “Try snapping your toes and ankles when your legs are stretched out behind you. But I feel like I’ve told you that before.”

Nitori smiled at him, shaking his head a little. “I’ll try that then.”

“And try to remember this time,” Sousuke replied, one corner of his mouth quirked up in a smirk, earning an eye roll from the mild mannered Nitori and he counted that as a win. 

“Ai-chan, Sou-chan, flirt later,” Nagisa called, effectively drawing their attention to him. Nitori sighed in exasperation, and Sousuke mouthed ‘Sou-chan?’ not quite sure what to do with that, and trailed after them. Rei followed them as well, admonishing him light heartedly for being too familiar with people. 

“But Rei,” Nagisa complained, drawing out his name. “He’s Rin-chan’s best friend, and Mako-chan’s practically family, so since they’re together, I can be familiar with him.” 

“Nagisa, that doesn’t make any sense,” Rei rubbed his temple. 

Makoto watched them with a tiny smile. Haru moved silently to his side and nudged him lightly, one corner of his mouth quirking up, his eyes warm. Makoto gave his best friend a happy smile and took his hand for a moment, squeezing it lightly. “Thank you, Haru-chan.” 

Haru sighed, “You just couldn’t help yourself.” He wandered off while Makoto laughed a little, to find an empty lane to do laps. 

It took Rin more time than he would have liked to get Makoto alone, but he managed to drag him into his office during a lull. They wouldn’t be truly alone until their friends dispersed, but he needed at least one moment with him. Makoto leaned against his desk, watching Rin with warm eyes as he shut the door firmly. 

Makoto thought he wanted to talk, but the first thing he did was step into his space and rest his hand over Makoto’s chest, where his mark ended, and lean up to kiss him. Makoto shivered, his arm going around Rin’s waist, holding him close, gently, like he was precious. 

“I hoped it was you,” Rin murmured, his other hand going to Makoto’s face, sliding along his jaw, his forehead resting against the taller man’s. “I mean, I wasn’t sure, but when I went to Australia, it didn’t move at all, and I was worried. But I came back, and with you…It moved again, all the way to my shoulder. I didn’t know, but I hoped, I mean with all the time we spent together.”

Makoto smiled, “I know. I wanted it to be you,” he confessed lowly. “I didn’t want to hope, because I wasn’t sure…I mean if that was what you wanted. I just want you to be happy, Rin, I didn’t think you wanted me.”

Rin stared at him, “Didn’t want you?” he scoffed a little laugh, “Makoto, if you ever figure out how great you are, we’re all in trouble. You’re perfect. Look at what you did for me. You haven’t seen Sousuke and Ai in years and you got them here. Just because I was getting down about myself. Makoto, you’re freaking perfect.” 

A blush overtook Makoto’s face and he buried it against Rin’s shoulder, unused to his praise, or anyone else’s for that matter, his groan muffled against Rin’s jacket. “Please stop,” he whined, “I get it.” 

“No you don’t,” Rin answered, “But I’ll keep trying. I’m stubborn.”

“That’s what I’m worried about,” Makoto muttered, huffing a sigh when Rin pulled him from his shelter against him. 

“Did you just sigh at me?” Rin asked, laughing. “Jeez, Mako, we’ve only been together for like twenty minutes and already you’re sighing at me.” 

Mako laughed, taking Rin’s face in his hands and kissing him, slowly, gently, lingering over it. “I love everything about you,” he told him, his voice soft and still a little awed. 

It was Rin’s turn to flush under his attention, and he kissed him again, putting all the feeling he could into it. His fingers moved over his chest along the mark there, marveling how different it felt from the rest of Makoto’s skin. It was warmer and seemed to pulse under his touch. 

Makoto gripped his hand, lacing their fingers together, and their eyes met for a long moment. “I should get back to my students,” he said, but the smile didn’t leave his face, nor did his release his fingers. “We’ll talk more at home.”

Rin grinned at him, kissing him once more before he could stop himself. He thought maybe they could put off talking for a while, but he was going to save saying that when Makoto didn’t have to go back out and be a coach. 

There was no place to sit on the train back. Makoto held onto the rail, and Rin leaned against his back, their left hands lacing together, marks lining up. They were tired and happy, Makoto couldn’t stop smiling and Rin occasionally nuzzled his face between his shoulders. Maybe they wouldn’t talk when they got back, or do anything other than collapse together. But that was fine, they had all the time in the world now.


End file.
